The Chase
This is the first episode in the Elements series. Hope you enjoy it! To Roo And her amazing Home series that inspired me to make this xx Airpaw I watched as Darkfoot prowled round the clearing. It was empty. Apart from us. I felt empty. 'So, Airpaw,' he was saying. 'You do it like this. You crouch.' He dropped down so close thta his belly fur only just touched the yellow grass. 'And stalk silently towards you prey.' He crept forward so quietly I could've heard Waterpaw's stomach back at camp. I sighed inwardly, and let the heat bake me to my sandy death. It had been like this for several moons: no rain, only sun, sun and more sun. It was a fierce yellow ball of warmth. There hadn't been a storm either. Inside my head, I laughed. We were StormClan, not SummerClan. My lovely, long white fur was roasting me inside, I thought I might pass out and have to go and see Poolwhisker, the medicine cat. 'Airpaw? Are you listening?' It was Darkfoot. As well as being my mentor, he was also my father. I was an only kit, and born on the night of a blue moon. What that meant, I don't know, but I was supposedly part of a prophecy. Whatever, ''I thought to myself. ''Who cares about a silly old omen? '' I jumped when I noticed that my father was staring intently at my, gazing way too deeply into my green eyes. He pushed me too hard; I was tired from all my training. For some reason, being born on some stupid blue moon meant a lot to him. I licked my dusty white pelt. 'What?' 'I asked where should I put my tail whilst hunting.' he repeated. 'Oh.' 'Are you alright?' he asked. 'We don't want unwell cats! Especially you.' he added. 'Sorry,' I said. 'I don't feel all that well.' 'Maybe its the heat.' 'Yeah,' I muttered. 'Something like that.' 'Let's take you back to camp,' Darkfoot suggested. I willingly obliged, happy to be in the shelter of the trees. My tongue felt dry in my mouth, and I coughed on the dirt that I generated with my paws. I was tired, bored and fed up. Maybe an avalanche of rock would kill me before this drought did. The sun beat down. I was still waiting for my avalanche. It hadn't come yet. I lay face down in my nest, trying desperatly to get some sleep. With the sweltering heat, it was hard to. By my side, Earthpaw mumbled something in her sleep, that sounded like, 'Spiderpaw.' I rolled my eyes. She had a massive crush on the grey tom. Though he was quite nice, I suppose. I let my eyelids droop. I even tried deep breathing, but I gave up. I just couldn't sleep. I padded out of the den and into the moonlit clearing. The moon was shining down, ever bright. I prayed that StarClan would end this stupid drought now, right now. We were starving, there were newborn kits that needed feeding. ''What have we done to deserve this? ''I screamed slilently at the sky. ''How can you be so cruel? Despite the darkness, it was still ridiculously humid, too humid for mid newleaf. I could see Tornclaw on guard, panting and enjoying the weather as much as I was. 'Out late, apprentice?' he mewed. 'Yeah,' I said. 'Can't sleep.' Tornclaw shook his head. 'I can't believe this.' He nodded to the cloudless sky. 'It's unnatural. It must mean a storm's coming soon. It has to rain. We can't keep living in this drought.' 'I'll go hunting,' I suggested. 'Maybe it will get me tired.' I gave a short laugh. 'As if.' 'Come back soon!' Tornclaw called after me as I bounded out of the tunnel. I headed for the pond. Well, what was left of the pond. The frogs had gone, and all that was left was a small puddle with thirsty reeds lapping up the last of its moisture. I sat down beside the cloudy pool and that's when I noticed how dry my throat was. I hadn't had a drink in days, not with all of Darkfoot's training and my mother, Appleblossom's petting. With a hungry look in my eyes, I drank up some of the liquid. It was disgusting. It was warm, sandy and tastless. I swiped my tongue round my muzzle several times before the taste faded away. 'Hey!' Instantly, I slid my claws out and whipped round. 'Who's there? I hissed into the shadows. I was unprotected, and everyone was asleep, even Featherstar. I felt a throbbing in my stomach. I realised that I was scared. Scared and nervous. 'Come out, whoever you are.' My voice came out as a wobble. I wondered what this cat was thinking. Probably, easy kill, just a weak apprentice. ''I was reminded of the fact that there was such thing as cannibal cats. If he or she was as hungry as I was, they were here to eat me. If I were that cat, I would. Suddenly, I ran. Why was I running? I have no idea. Probably because I was scared. Probably because I was terrified that some cat was going to eat me. Probably because I was a young apprentice with poor defence skills. I ran and ran. Who would win? The bigger, older, wiser cat, definetly. Almost certainly. I pushed my paws faster and ducked under the foliages, skidding round every corner, every path I could find. I felt the adrenaline rush through my muscles, urging me on, on, on. I could here the cat's breathing behind me, its paws thudding against the baked earth. It's shadow was talller, bigger than mine. His nose brushed my tail, and I panicked. It was definite. I was going to lose the chase. Right then, I stopped, skidded to a halt. My mad, idiotic brain was telling me to turn round and fight this cat. I was the prey. And it was the predator. 'Airpaw, wait up!' I whisked round. It was a voice, a voice I knew. I didn't meet the blue eyes that stared at me from the shade. 'Airpaw, it's me,' he whispered. 'Why were you running?' I stared, motionless, at Firepaw. The massive tom leaned over me, twice my size. 'I-I-I thought you were an intruder.' I admitted. 'Well, its only me.' He mewed, a humourous glint in his eyes. 'What were you doing out here, creeping up on me like that?' I demanded. 'Couldn't sleep,' He replied. He sighed. 'It's so hot, and I'm so tired.' He looked at the clouds. 'I hope this will end soon.' I felt something splash onto my nose. It was wet, cool and refreshing. I followed Firepaw's gaze. 'The storm!' I said. Quicked, thicker and harder the raindrpos began to fall. The moon was covered by grey puffs, and the grass was now wet. Firepaw's ice gaze turned to me, excitment burning in his eyes. 'It has arrived.' I watched as the clouds unfolded and poured down their many moons of tears. Thunder rumbled in the distance, a threat, yet a sign of hope to me in every way possible. My fur was washed clean, and it was now dripping wet, but back to its ghostly white. I envisioned the future: I could see the lush green grass, prey to feed twenty Clans' worth of cats. In my vision, I saw the moons ahead of me, a kit, a mate. My life was perfect. Then I was brought back to reality. ''It's probably just a passing outburst. I told myself. It will only last a few minutes. ''But I found myself still standing in the pouring rain later. Suddenly, I felt like I was about to wobble and pass out. ''This storm is bad, I heard a voice say in the back of my mind. Firepaw looked a little hazy too. 'Airpaw,' he said, his words slurrred. 'I think I'm about to-' He stopped speaking as he fell to the ground with a thump. I stared at the massive lump of ginger fur through my blurred vision. But soon, everything went black as I struggled to stay consious. I woke with a start. It was raining wherever I was in this dreamland. There were several reasons why I thought I was dreaming: The first: Stormstar was there, and he had been dead for ages. He was the founder of StormClan. I could tell it was him because he had one grey eye, the other shredded in battle, information the elders' had passed down to me from their elders. The second: everyone was illuminated in a shiny glow, despite the thunder, which gave me the thought that I must be in StarClan. I padded forward towards the trees, where Stormstar stood. 'What am I doing here?' I asked, slightly baffled. The ancient leader looked at me with such knowledge in his eyes, I immedietly trusted him. However, there was a sense of terror in the forest, as if something bad was about to happen. I suddenly felt afraid. 'What is it?' I whispered. I realised that on my left were Earthpaw and Firepaw, and on my right was Waterpaw, all having the same dream as me, though I couldn't hear them. Stormstar gazed into my eyes. 'The elements.' he murmered. 'You have finally come!' Category:Helloitsmeguys' Fanfics Category:Elements (Series) Category:WFW 1